It happened on the evening of May 22 and lasted seevral hours into the early morning hours of May 23rd 1844 ... in a house of Shiraz, Iran, formerly Persia that the Bab which means "Gate" in Arabic revealed His Mission to Mullah Husayn..His first disciple, this marked the beginning of the Baha'i Era.

He was the bearer of a long-promised Divine Revelation destined to transform the spiritual life of the human race.

His role, He said, was to be the portal through which the universally anticipated Revelation of God would appear in the form of another Messenger. This Messenger from God would be far greater: He would usher in the age of peace and justice promised in Islam, Judaism, Christianity and all the other world religions.

The Bab referred to the Messenger as "Him Whom God shall make manifest" and said, "No words of Mine can adequately describe Him nor. . . do justice to His Cause."

That Messenger was Baha'u'llah.

On May 23, Baha'is celebrated the anniversary of the Declaration of the Bab, who, after His announcement, was arrested, beaten and imprisoned. On July 9, 1850, He was executed in the public square of the town of Tabriz.

The Declaration of the Bab is one of nine holy days on which Baha'is suspend work and school.

Prominent 19th century French writer A.L.M. Nicolas wrote that the Bab's life "is one of the most magnificent examples of courage which it has been the privilege of mankind to behold."

Baha'i Faith

The Bahá'í Faith is a religion founded by Bahá'u'lláh in 19th-century Persia, emphasizing the spiritual unity of all humankind. There are about six million Bahá'ís in more than 200 countries and territories around the world.